Research

Expectations to find, read, and write about a topic begin as early as late elementary school. In later years, students are expected to complete the steps of the process more and more independently. Below are some common barriers that limit student's ability to work independently and some suggested tools that will empower all students.

Decoding	Allow the student to use text to speech to support decoding when searching the Internet for sources. Quick Guide: Installing and Using the Read&Write for Google Toolbar
Comprehension of grade-level text	Provide students with a curated selection of resources to explore. MCPS media centers maintain subscriptions to many comprehension-friendly resources that include options to find content at different reading levels and provide text to speech and multimedia supports for comprehension. Quick Guides: UDL Features of Online Media Subscriptions Building Background Knowledge
Taking notes while reading	Some students need an organizational structure to record ideas. Others need to brainstorm ideas then organize their thoughts. Electronic graphic organizers allow for either process. Teachers can scaffold at first and gradually release students to create their own organizers. Quick Guides: Sticky Note Strategy low tech organizational strategy Electronic tools for research:     Google Keep Read&Write Highlighting Tool and Extracting Notes Premium Version Read&Write Voice notes on the Read&Write for Google Toolbar Notetaking tools for PDFs: Using Assistive Technology Tools in Kami
Identifying main idea and key details	Electronic highlighters help students who over highlight, or have fine motor issues. Inserting comments allows students to make and change their insights directly in the text. Audio comments offer the same without requiring the student to type. Teachers can insert comments or audio comments to guide students while reading.   Quick Guides: Read&Write Highlighting and Extracting Notes Tool Read&Write Voice notes to support Reading comprehension
Organization	Some students need an organizational structure to place ideas during the pre-writing process. Others need to brainstorm and then organize their thoughts. Electronic graphic organizers allow for either process. Teachers can scaffold the process and gradually release students to create their own organizers. Quick Guides: • Sticky Note Strategy low tech organizational strategy • Tables to Text strategy: • Electronic tools for research:       Google Keep • Read &Write Extracting Highlights • Voice notes on the Read and Write for Google Toolbar